This is the moment a 16-year-old boy suffered a broken back and two broken legs when he was knocked flying by an alleged drink-driver in a hit-and-run incident.

The horrific crash was caught on CCTV security cameras in the historic Eyup district of Turkey’s biggest city of Istanbul.

The footage shows the teenager step out into the narrow street where he is hit by the speeding red car which knocks him somersaulting about 10 metres (33 feet) through the air.

The boy, whose name has not been released, hits a parked taxi before landing in the street as the car which hit him speeds off without stopping.

Passersby rushed to his aid and called for an ambulance to rush him to hospital where doctors diagnosed him as suffering from multiple injuries including a broken back and two broken legs. His condition is said to be stable, although it is unclear if he has been paralysed.

The youngster, who had been staying with his uncle who lives nearby, was hit by the car on his way back from a trip to the local baker’s to buy bread.

Eyewitnesses said the driver of the car, and his three passengers, appeared to be drunk.

Local resident Kursat Alparslan Turan, who witnessed the incident, said: “The car was going very fast and hit the boy. When we checked him we realised both his legs and his back were broken.

“The car didn’t stop at all. We didn’t recognise the driver. They say the youngsters in the car were drunk and they did not have driving licences. This is why they didn’t stop.”

Police later arrested a man, believed to be the driver of the car, the next day after interviewing witnesses and viewing the CCTV footage.

Officers said that when they caught up with the man, in the Kagithane area of Istanbul, he was drinking alcohol. The investigation is ongoing.